ScienceDaily

Our brain is arguably the organ that most distinguishes humans from other primates. Its exceptional size, complexity and capabilities far exceed those of any other species on Earth. Yet humans share upwards of 95% of our genome with chimpanzees, our closest living relatives.

A new study uncovers how a novel immunotherapy prevents squamous cell carcinoma, with benefits lasting five years after treatment. This therapy is the first to activate specific components of the adaptive immune system, particularly CD4+ T helper cells, which are not known to be involved in traditional cancer treatments. This work highlights the potential for similar immunotherapies to prevent other cancers throughout the body.

Highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza A virus (HPAI H5N1) remains a low risk to the general public, and public health experts in the United States believe that available treatments and vaccines, as well as those in development, are sufficient to prevent severe disease.

Using field sensors, various ecological modelling technologies and deep learning algorithms, a French research team has developed a method for mapping the risk of collisions between animals and vehicles along transport infrastructures. In the future, it could contribute to collision management in autonomous vehicles thanks to connected infrastructures.

A new study sheds light on the trajectory of cardiovascular health (CVH) early in life, which may contribute to CVH disparities in adulthood. Across demographic subgroups, CVH scores begin to decline at approximately 10 years of age and appear driven by health behaviors rather than health factors. Key health behaviors to target for improving early-life CVH include better sleep, healthier diet, and reducing smoking.

Scientists have discovered the oldest known animal with saber teeth: a predator that lived 270 million years ago. This animal, from before the age of the dinosaurs, was a dog-like creature that was related to the ancestors of mammals.

Researchers have named six new tree species based on comparisons made among collections of dried plant specimens from across the Neotropics. Of these six, three of the new species have only been found in Panama: Matisia petaquillae, Matisia changuinolana and Matisia aquilarum. The new species from Colombia identified in the same report are Matisia genesiana, Matisia mutatana and Matisia rufula.

Chlorine plays an essential part in daily life, from keeping pools clean to preserving food. Now, a team of chemists developed a more environmentally friendly way to integrate chlorine into chemical building blocks for medications, plastics, pesticides and other essential products while reducing costs.

Steroid hormones are among the most widespread aquatic micropollutants. They are harmful to human health, and they cause ecological imbalances in aquatic environments. Researchers investigated how steroid hormones are degraded in an electrochemical membrane reactor with carbon nanotube membranes. They found that adsorption of steroid hormones on the carbon nanotubes did not limit the hormones' subsequent degradation.

A new study presents what is believed to be the oldest known example in the fossil record of an evolutionary arms race. These 517-million-year-old predator-prey interactions occurred in the ocean covering what is now South Australia between a small, shelled animal distantly related to brachiopods and an unknown marine animal capable of piercing its shell.